孔 meaning and stroke order
Opening, hole, orifice; great
How to write 孔, stroke by stroke
4 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
Meaning of 孔
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- hole
- classifier for cave dwellings
How 孔 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. The mouth 乚 of a crying baby 子.
Radical: 子 (son), shared by 30 characters on this site.
How to remember 孔
On the left is a baby 子 (zǐ), and on the right is 乚, the wide open mouth of that crying baby. Picture the baby's mouth as a round opening, and you have 孔 (kǒng), a hole.
孔 usually appears in compound words for openings, such as 鼻孔 (bíkǒng) nostril, 瞳孔 (tóngkǒng) pupil, and 插孔 (chākǒng) socket. It is also a classifier for cave dwellings. Example: 墙上有一个小孔。(Qiáng shàng yǒu yí gè xiǎo kǒng.) There is a small hole in the wall.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 孔 (kǒng) with 孙 (sūn, grandchild), which also has 子 on the left but 小 on the right. Also, 孔 is third tone, so do not say it like 空 (kōng, empty) in first tone.
Common words with 孔
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
孔 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 孔
Learning 孔 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 孔
How many strokes are in 孔?
孔 is written with 4 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 孔 mean?
孔 (kǒng) means opening, hole, orifice; great. A common word with it is 面孔 (miànkǒng), meaning "face".
How do you pronounce 孔?
孔 is pronounced kǒng, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 孔?
The radical of 孔 is 子, which carries the idea of "son". Dictionaries list 孔 under this radical.
Is 孔 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 孔 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Is 孔 related to Confucius?
Yes. 孔 is a common surname, and Confucius is called 孔子 (Kǒngzǐ) in Chinese. You will see it in names like 孔庙 (Kǒngmiào), a Confucian temple.
What is the difference between 孔 and 洞 (dòng)?
Both can mean hole, but 孔 usually suggests a small, neat opening like a pinhole or nostril. 洞 is more general and often bigger, like a cave or a hole in clothing. In everyday speech 洞 is more common on its own, while 孔 mostly appears in compounds.